Erdogan opens fire on the Biden administration .. What are the reasons?

ANKARA

- In the preface to his newly released book, A More Just World Is Possible, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan argues that the United Nations Security Council, made up of 5 permanent members who control the world, is in dire need of real reform.

This is the meaning of the famous phrase he constantly repeats, "The world is greater than five."

The Turkish president's statements, during and after his speech at the United Nations General Assembly, carried sharp criticism towards the United States.

What are the reasons for this sudden attack, and what does its timing mean before Erdogan meets with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, and does it indicate escalation and tension in bilateral relations in the near term?

Turkish anger

"Turkish-American relations are not good. Our wish was that the relationship between two Atlantic countries would advance within the framework of friendship and not in an atmosphere of hostility, but the course of things today does not bode well," this is what the Turkish president said.

Erdogan added, "The S-400 deal is finished for us. We will search for our rights within the framework of international law after the decision to remove us from the F-35 fighter program." Afghanistan. Biden continues to send weapons to terrorist organizations east of the Euphrates, as was done by his predecessor, Donald Trump. The meeting with the Russian leadership will not take place at the level of bodies, but rather individually and directly between the two presidents.

These successive statements in which Erdogan attacked his American counterpart recently, and on various occasions, express Turkish anger at the American administration.

Relations between the two NATO allies were severely strained last year, when Ankara acquired the advanced Russian air defense system "S-400", prompting Washington to suspend Ankara's participation in the program to manufacture its F-35 aircraft.

Turkey's acquisition of the Russian "S-400" system, despite Washington's objections, has strained the relationship between the two parties (Al-Jazeera)

The US Treasury had imposed sanctions on the Turkish Defense Industries Department, its head, Ismail Demir, and 3 of its officials, as punishment for Ankara's purchase of the Russian air defense system, in a move that Ankara considered would harm relations with Washington, noting that it would respond with the necessary.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said - in a speech before parliament during the discussion of his ministry's budget for 2021 - that buying the "S-400" system is not an option but rather a necessity to preserve the security, safety, stability and sovereignty of Turkey, stressing that his country is not just a country that buys F-fighters. -35” American, rather it is a partner in its industry.

Reasons for the attack

In the context, the Turkish researcher in international relations, Taha Oda Oglu - told Al Jazeera Net - that there was Turkish reliance on holding a meeting between Erdogan and Biden on the sidelines of the United Nations summit after the coordination that took place between them recently in the Afghan file, but the failure of the meeting revealed the extent of the differences between the two countries. Which clearly emerged through Erdogan's statements in the past few days.

Erdogan (left) and Biden during their meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Brussels last June (Reuters)

On the other hand, Samir Salha, professor of international law at Kocaeli University, confirmed that Erdogan’s reaction says that what prompted him to escalate in this way against Biden is farther and more important than the issue of the Russian missile crisis, likely due to the American proposal east of the Euphrates and the support of the anti-Ankara Kurds. over there.

US-Turkish relations

And researcher Odehoglu returned to say that Turkish-American relations "are currently experiencing their worst state at the moment, and until the moment it seems that Turkish attempts to reassure the American side regarding the S-400 file and the relationship with Russia have not succeeded."

He believes that the coming months will witness a major escalation between the Americans and the Turks, in light of Ankara's adherence to the advanced Russian air defense system.

"This will double the American pressure on Ankara, especially the Erdogan government, which is preparing for the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections," the researcher added.

As for the Turkish academic, he explained that the leaders in Ankara were looking forward to a Turkish-American summit in New York or Washington on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, and that did not happen, and the real Turkish response to Washington will come during the joint press conference that Erdogan will hold with Putin in Sochi, Russia, if He got what he wanted there.

He said, "Putin will present many plans and suggestions to Erdogan, and the results of the bargains will inevitably worry Washington, and what happened may be Ankara's confirmation of the occurrence of US-Russian understandings on Syria that satisfy Israel, ignore Iran, and protect the SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) by keeping the Syrian regime in great care. Waiting for the transitional phase, which will be at Turkey's expense in northern Syria, and that it has to turn the table before it announces the zero hour."

He pointed out that the developments of events in Afghanistan and the way the Biden administration dealt with the file, in addition to the lessons of the recent AUKUS military alliance between the United States, Australia and Britain, which overthrew France in the game of new international balances, means Turkey before other capitals as well. That the Turkish-American differences on many bilateral and regional files still exist, and that Erdogan's meeting with Biden last June did not address them, and that the chances of the Afghan crisis did not bring the positions close enough.